Yesterday I harvested parsnips to roast and serve for my Passover seder. These parsnips I seeded exactly one year ago and overwintered in a bed of leaf mulch. The winter intensifies and carmelizes the sweetness and flavor of the parsnips. … Continue reading →

Gardener’s spring nightmare: it snows. That’s what happened. After days of rain, snow flurries and then snow covering all those baby seedlings. Turns out the bed of snow actually saved the seedlings and seeds by insulating them from the 20 … Continue reading →

Seed packets always say to plant after the danger of the final frost. But when is that exactly? Despite the snow flurries and cold, frosty mornings, the ground is sufficiently warm, and the seeds adequately prepared to germinate and sprout. … Continue reading →

Last week I planted earlier than I usually do. And, of course, it rained and then snowed a few days later. Today as I made garden rounds, I spotted the first tiny sprouts having germinated from last week’s seed plantings. … Continue reading →

Last year, spring was five to six weeks slow. Spring 2016 seems to be coming more quickly than last. As you may recall from earlier posts, I plant by soil temperature, not length of day. This spring the soil is already … Continue reading →

“For gardeners, this is the season of lists and callow hopefulness; hundreds of thousands of bewitched readers are poring over their catalogues, making lists for their seed and plant orders, dreaming their dreams.” – Katharine White, Onward & Upward in … Continue reading →

This long, lingering Indian Summer — or whatever the weather is doing with several weeks of hot, sunny days — is bringing in a huge crop of warm weather vegetables. Great, flavorful tomatoes. Great peppers of all shapes and colors. … Continue reading →